Recent college graduates sometimes have unrealistic expectations about how much money they will begin making in their entry-level jobs. Now, with job cuts soaring and employers increasingly cutting budgets and implementing hiring freezes, many young people have discovered that the salary they initially envisioned is even more difficult to come by during an economic downturn.

Despite these obstacles, current college students and recent graduates can still put themselves on the right track to a high-paying career, according to Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., and Michael Farr, co-authors of "200 Best Jobs for College Graduates, Fourth Edition."